Chapter 1030: Wave after Wave
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Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
“F*ck, I just can’t stand you civil servants. You’re full of benevolence and morals, and you’re sanctimonious. You’re like a weak chicken. If King Yue Fei hadn’t fought his way to the gra.s.sland, Zamo He would have fought his way into Shanhai Pa.s.s.’
“The Northern Barbarians are determined to enter the Central Plains. Do they still want to retreat? Dream on. Do you believe that as long as King Yue Fei repels Zamo He and understands Zamo He’s background, he will hide in the defense line of Jinzhou? Then, the next step will be a crisis point for the
300,000 troops from the Northern Barbarians.”
There was an endless commotion in the Imperial Library.
Yu Zongshen placed the teacup heavily on the table.
The room immediately fell silent.
Yu Zongshen coughed and said, “What should come will come eventually. We should be glad that King Yue Fei can still guard the North, and not criticize who p s right and who’s wrong. The Xie family is just a merchant family, but they already know how to buy and sell great millet seeds to help the North farm in spring and recuperate. Eldest Princess Shaoyi is a woman, but she’s also concerned about her country. She joined the army and went to the country with the You army. The Daoist priests of the Wanjun Mountain also stepped forward in the face of the country’s disaster. All of you are officials in the court, so why are you in a mess?”
These indifferent words made the court officials look ashamed.
In the blink of an eye, it was August. Just as the court officials were worried about the war in the North, a piece of news came from the Liang army. The King of Liang led an army of 300,000 and launched a general attack on the Liang resistance army.
Ever since Duke Xu presided over the Liang resistance army for more than a year, there had been endless friction between the two sides, with casualties on both sides. The Liang resistance army was well-equipped and had the advantage of having more people. Meanwhile, Thief Liang did not dare to take the risk of losing his troops and easily sent troops to attack the Liang resistance army. Both sides had been in a stalemate.
Now that the war in the North had yet to end, Thief Liang had recuperated in Xiangyang for two years and his strength had already recovered. This battle was very tense.
However, before one wave was over, another rose.
The riots everywhere in the Great Zhou Dynasty could no longer be completely suppressed.
The remaining power of the clans in Shandong rose from the ashes and gathered. They called themselves the “rebellion army” and forcefully blasted open the city gate. They smashed the government office and released the prisoners who were locked up in prison. They captured all the officials in the government office and locked them up in prison carriages to parade and torture them in front of the commoners.
As soon as the news spread, there was an unprecedented wave of anti-Zhou protests everywhere.
The Great Zhou Dynasty was in chaos.
Yuan Jizi, who was meditating in the tent, opened his eyes and sighed softly. Xu Ming heard the commotion. “Martial Uncle, do you have any advice?”
“The Great Zhou Dynasty’s dragon vein is gone.” With that, Yuan Jizi slowly closed his eyes and meditated.
Xu Ming was shocked. “Martial Uncle, why do you say that? King Yue Fei is a true dragon with a long lifespan. He’s a wise ruler. Since he’s from the orthodox lineage of the royal family, it’s only logical for him to continue the Great Zhou’s throne and the fate of the country.”
Yuan Jizi closed his eyes and did not move. “This is the heavenly secret. Let’s see!”
Xu Ming immediately calmed down. His Martial Uncle’s divination wouldn’t be wrong, so there was only one possibility.
After a long while, a long sigh came from the tent.
The news of the chaos reached Yu Youyao’s ears. At this moment, she had already returned to the Jinyuan Garden.
The battle with Zamo He had ushered in a precious period of time for the North to recuperate. As the war between the two sides had entered a
stalemate, Yin Huaixi really couldn’t bear for Yu Youyao to stay in the army and suffer. After the Dragon Boat Festival, he sent troops to escort her back to Jinzhou.
Yu Youyao did not want to return, but she also knew that all the general matters in the army were on the right track. She could not help much if she stayed in the army.
For more than a year after that, the two of them had been dealing with the situation of being separated from each other.
Yu Youyao did not stay idle either. Liaodong had accepted more than two million refugees. Most of the land was reclaimed and was very barren. Other than sweet potatoes, there was no other crop to grow.
Now that the sweet potatoes had solved the problem of food and shelter, they had to increase the production of food and improve the lack of supplies in the North.
Yu Youyao studied the farm books with the old farmers in the manor. Finally, her gaze landed on the green fertilizer.
The Great Zhou Dynasty valued agriculture and merchants, and they also valued fertilizer that could increase crop production.
Green manure was one of them, and it had a history of more than a thousand years.
The more common manure in the Great Zhou Dynasty were made of plants such as common vetch, Chinese milkvetch, clovers, and so on. They mostly grew in the south.
Yu Youyao discovered that there were records of green manure in the book “Broad Aspirations” from the Jin Dynasty. In the book, it said, “Green, yellow, and purple flowers are planted under rice in December. They spread and are prosperous. They can beautify fields and make leaves edible.”
Green manure was already very widespread in the Northern Wei dynasty. According to the Qimin Yaoshu, “After planting it in spring, one can harvest 600 kilograms per acre. Its beauty is the same as silkworm feces.”
The effect of green manure was the same as all kinds of feces.
Common vetch was a very common green manure in the south. It was rare in Liaodong, mainly because the land was vast and the people were spa.r.s.e. Agriculture was not developed, so no one valued this.
Yu Youyao also realized that the bird vetch that was mainly planted in the south preferred moist environments and could not be planted in the Liaodong area.
Later, she discovered in a book called “The History of the North” that there was a type of hairy vetch in the north of China that was resistant to cold. It was very resistant to cold, had great adaptability, and did not have strict requirements for the soil. It could be planted in sand, soil, and clay. Moreover, it had a strong vitality and was tenacious. It did not compete with other crops for nutrition. It also had the advantages of improving the soil, making the land fertile, maintaining water and soil, and suppressing weeds.
Yu Youyao wrote a letter and told Yin Huaixi about this discovery. She even sighed with emotion in the letter. “As expected, people still have to study more to gain more knowledge.”
Even if she had always been interested in agriculture, she wouldn’t have realized that there was a type of hairy vetch in north China that could be planted in Liaodong?!
Yu Youyao immediately sent someone to the north to buy the hairy vetch seeds.
The hairy vetch was like a weed in the north of China, covering the entire mountain. The cost of seeds was very low. With the help of the local government office, they bought a large batch without spending much money.
Hence, Yu Youyao cooperated with the state government office to promote the hairy vetch throughout the North. She also sent a letter to Ye Xiaoci, in which she mentioned the various benefits of the hairy vetch.
. After the autumn harvest, when the farmland is empty, plant the hairy vetch that can withstand the cold and winter. It can be used as green manure to maintain the land.’
“The large amount of fresh hairy vetch harvested can be used for livestock. With a large amount of fresh gra.s.s, the livestock in the Liaodong area can also be expanded on a large scale.”
“A large amount of meat, wool, fresh milk, and even horses can not only improve the lives of the commoners in Liaodong as soon as possible, but also provide military supplies.”
“This way, we can completely resolve the lack of supplies in Liaodong. This is a meritorious move in the current era. I hope Lord Ye will think twice.”
Ye Xiaoci was also knowledgeable. He kept feeling that as a parent official of a prefecture, he was actually not as magnanimous as Eldest Princess Shaoyi. Immediately, he felt a little complicated and ashamed.
He couldn’t help but sigh with emotion to his aides. “There are three regrets in life. First, begonia has no fragrance. Second, shad has many fish bones. Third, Eldest Princess of Shaoyi isn’t a man..”